CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – Soils in northern and east-central
Illinois are beginning to dry out after the rains of last weekend, according to
Jennie Atkins, Water and Atmospheric Resources Monitoring (WARM)
Program Manager at the Illinois State Water Survey, Prairie Research Institute,
University of Illinois.

Soil moisture levels at 2 inches ended the first half of
July with a statewide average of 0.30 water fraction by volume (wfv), slightly
below the field capacity for most of the soils monitored.

The highest moisture levels were in northern and
east-central Illinois with regional averages of 0.35 and 0.38 wfv at two inches,
respectively. These areas saw up to 4.5 inches of rain on July 12 and 13.
West-central and southern Illinois had averages of 0.25 and 0.28 wfv,
respectively, still significantly above the wilting point of 0.14 wfv.

Soil temperatures have cooled over the past few days. On
July 15, temperatures were below normal with statewide averages of 74.0 degrees
F and 72.7 degrees at depths of 4 inches under sod and under bare soil.

The Illinois State Water Survey at the University of
Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, a division of the Prairie Research Institute, is
the primary agency in Illinois concerned with water and atmospheric resources.